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El Clásico
El Clásico (English: The Classic), also known as El derbi español, El derbi, ¡El SuperClásico! or El clàssic (Catalan language) is a football match between rivals Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. The rivalry comes about as Madrid and Barcelona are the two largest cities in Spain, and they are often identified with 'Spanishness' and Catalanism, respectively, whilst the clubs are the most successful and influential football clubs in the country. It is one of the biggest football matches in the world, watched by hundreds of millions of people in many countries. The clásico term came about in the mid-2000s, and is originally a name for any historical South American footballing rivalry. The new name came about due to the growing presence of Spanish football in the Americas, with the advent of global marketing of the game, and in America. Rivalry From the early days of football in Spain the two clubs were seen as representatives of the Spanish Centralized State and Catalonia, as well as the two cities themselves which have moved in different directions culturally speaking. This phenomenon in sporting terms also has implications that stray deeply into the country's sociology and politics. Madrid is the seat of the government and of the royal family. Especially during the Francoist era, it came to represent the conservative centripetal forces. It should be noted that this perception contrasts with the symbolic value that the siege of Madrid had during the Spanish civil war for the republican side . Though the first socialist party in Spain was founded in Madrid, almost all the ideas that have shaped country's modern history - republicanism, federalism, anarchism, syndicalism and communism - have been introduced and become stronger in it, mainly via Catalonia. Also fashions, whether in clothing or art have tended to take root in Barcelona's more welcoming soil years before they gained acceptance in Madrid. During the dictatorships of Primo de Rivera and, especially, the one of Francisco Franco, all regional languages and identities were frowned upon and restrained. FC Barcelona became more than a club (més que un club) because of its alleged connection to progressive beliefs. However, during Franco's regime, the blaugrana team seemed to be granted profit due to its good relationship with the dictator at management level. In any case, for most of the Catalans, and many other Spaniards as well, Real Madrid was regarded as the establishment club, in spite of the fact that during the Spanish Civil War, presidents of both clubs like Josep Sunyol and Rafael Sánchez Guerra, suffered at the hands of los nacionales. The rivalry was intensified during the 1950s when the clubs disputed the signing of Alfredo Di Stefano. Di Stefano had impressed both Barcelona and Real Madrid whilst playing for Club Deportivo Los Millonarios in Bogota, during a players' strike in his native Argentina. Both Madrid and Barcelona attempted to sign him and, due to confusion that emerged from di Stefano moving to Millonarios from River Plate following the strike, both clubs claimed to own his registration.Subsequently, both Barcelona and Real Madrid believed that they had signed him. After intervention from the Spanish FA Barcelona backed down and di Stefano moved to Madrid; rumour remains that Barca were forced to act by Franco, but Madrid maintained that they acted voluntarily. Di Stefano became integral in the subsequent success achieved by the Madrid, scoring twice in his first game against Barcelona. With him, Madrid won the initial five European Champions Cup competitions. The 1960s saw the rivalry reach the European stage when they met twice at the European Cup, Real Madrid winning in 1960 and FC Barcelona winning in 1961. The story of FC Barcelona top players defecting to arch-rival Real Madrid repeated in the 1980s with Bernd Schuster and in the 1990s with Michael Laudrup. In 2000 the rivalry reached its peak following the decision by Luís Figo to leave FC Barcelona and sign for Real Madrid. The two teams met again in the UEFA Champions League semi-final in 2002. Real Madrid, the eventual champion, won the clash dubbed by Spanish media as the Match of the Century. Currently, Real Madrid is the team with the larger following in Spain, 32.8% of football fans, and FC Barcelona is close behind, with 25.7%, according to a survey in May 2007 by the public Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas. The next team in the list, Valencia CF, is far behind with 5.3%. Matches Head to Head Players who played for both clubs While the transfers of Luis Enrique from Real Madrid to Barcelona and Luís Figo from Barcelona to Real Madrid caused an uproar amongst the fans of their respective clubs, the rivalry between the two teams has not prevented players from switching teams, sometimes without controversy. Players such as Ricardo Zamora, Josep Samitier, Bernd Schuster, Michael Laudrup and Ronaldo have also played for both teams. * Alfonso Albéniz (Barça to Madrid) (1902) * Luciano Liz Raga (Madrid to Barça) (1905) * Charles Wallace (Barça to Madrid) (1906) * José Quirante (Barça to Madrid) (1906) * Alfonso Albéniz (Barça to Madrid) (1911) * Arsenio Comamala (Barça to Real Madrid) (1911) * W. Rozitsky (Barça to Madrid) (1913) * Ricardo Zamora (Barça to Espanyol to Madrid) (1930) * Josep Samitier (Barça to Madrid) (1932) * Hilario Juan Marrero Pérez (Madrid to Valencia to Barça) (1939) * Alfonso Navarro (Barça to Madrid) (1950) * Justo Tejada (Barça to Madrid) (1961) * Jesús Pereda (Real Madrid to Real Valladolid to Sevilla to Barça) (1961) * Evaristo de Macedo (Barça to Madrid) (1962) * Fernand Goyvaerts (Barça to Madrid) (1965) * Lucien Muller (Madrid to Barça) (1965) * Lorenzo Amador (Madrid to Hércules CF to Barça) (1980) * Bernd Schuster (Barça to Madrid) (1988) * Luis Milla (Barça to Madrid) (1990) * Gheorghe Hagi (Madrid to Brescia to Barça) (1991) * Fernando ”Nando” Muñoz (Barça to Madrid) (1992) * Julen Lopetegui (Madrid to CD Logroñés to Barça) (1994) * Michael Laudrup (Barça to Madrid) (1994) * Robert Prosinecki (Madrid to Real Oviedo to Barça) (1995) * Miquel Soler (Barça to Sevilla to Madrid) (1995) * Luis Enrique (Madrid to Barça) (1996) * Daniel García Lara (Madrid to Real Mallorca to Barça) (1999) * Luís Figo (Barça to Madrid) (2000) * Albert Celades (Barça to Celta Vigo to Real Madrid) (2000) * Alfonso Pérez (Madrid to Real Betis to Barça) (2000) * Jordi López (Barça B to Madrid B) (2002) * Ronaldo (Barça to Inter Milan to Madrid) (2002) * Roberto Trashorras Gayoso (Barça B to Madrid B) (2003) * Samuel Eto'o (Madrid to Real Mallorca to Barça) (2004) * Jeffrey Hoogervorst (Madrid B to Barça B) (2006) * Thaer Bawab (Madrid B to Barça B) (2007) * Javier Saviola (Barça to Madrid) (2007) Category:Article management templates Category:Watercooler Category:Template documentation Category:la liga